Rookie SWOT: Cooper Kupp

Bruce Matson Posted On June 15, 2017

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Name: Cooper Kupp

Position: Wide Receiver

Pro Team: Los Angeles Rams

College Team: Eastern Washington

Draft Status: Round Three, Pick No. 69

Video Highlights

Combine Review

Height: 6’2’’
Weight: 204 Pounds
Arm Length: 31 ½’’
Hand Size: 9 1.2’’
Bench Press: DNP
40-Yard-Dash: 4.62
20-Yard-Shuttle: 4.08
3-Cone: 6.75
Vertical: 31’’
Broad Jump: 116’’

Strengths

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Kupp was very productive during his four-year collegiate career, catching 428 receptions for 6,464 yards and 73 touchdowns. He managed to own a 31.03 percent market share of Eastern Washington’s passing offense during his senior season.

The first thing you will notice while watching his tape is that he’s a natural hands-catcher who is very aggressive at the catch point. His strong hands allow him to catch tough passes that are away from his body. He also has superb ball-tracking skills that aid him in making over the shoulder catches with ease and will sometimes help him make unbelievable circus-like catches. Effort will never be an issue with this kid as he’s consistently exerting himself to maximize his potential on every play.

Weaknesses

Athleticism is his biggest weakness. He lacks the speed to be a true deep threat and the burst to create separation while getting in and out of his breaks. His size will prevent him from operating on the perimeter of the field which will handcuff him to lining up mostly in the slot. With that being said, he will need a large volume of targets to be relevant in fantasy leagues.

Opportunities

The Rams’ are currently rebuilding their roster and their receiver corps is stacked with a lot of talented developmental prospects. The top two receivers on the depth charts are Robert Woods and Tavon Austin. If he plays his cards right in training camp and has a solid performance during preseason, Kupp could find himself in the starting lineup early in his rookie season.

Threats

Rebuilding teams tend to have a revolving door of talent entering and exiting the roster at all times, meaning there’s going to be a lack of stability in the passing game until the team gets some of the wrinkles ironed out. This will be quarterback Jared Goff’s second season and by judging from his rookie season, he could experience a slow developmental upbringing in the Rams’ offensive system, which could limit the quality of targets for Kupp during the first few seasons of his career.

The Rams don’t have the most talented wide receiver corps in the league but they do have a fair amount of developmental prospects who have the potential to develop into starting caliber players. Mike Thomas, Pharoh Cooper, Josh Reynolds, Nelson Spruce , Bradley Marquez, Marquez North and Paul McRoberts are all threats to steal targets away from Kupp in the near future.

Short-Term Expectations

Expect him to receive a limited number of targets during the first few years of his career, with him working in periodically in three and four wide receiver sets. The Rams are going to provide a lot of opportunities to all of the receivers on the roster to see what they have which could potentially hurt Kupp’s fantasy production during the first couple years of his career.

Long-Term Expectations

Kupp should eventually develop into the team’s slot receiver. With the amount of effort he puts into the game, it’s hard to imaging him not carving out some sort of role in the NFL. He may never become a top tier fantasy asset but he should become a quality slot receiver in the league. His long-term value is going to dependent on whether or not the Rams can supply a high volume passing attack. The more targets going around in the passing game the better it will be for Kupp’s fantasy appeal.

NFL Comparison

Like Kupp, Cecil Shorts was another small school prospect who had to rely on efficient route running and grit to be able to compete at the NFL level. Both players are very similar in size, speed and athleticism. Shorts was able to capitalize on a large volume of targets during the early years of his career which is something Kupp needs to do in order to become a consistent fantasy asset.

Jarvis Landry is another player who compares to Kupp as both players are very assertive at the catch point and must be aggressive getting in and out of their breaks to be able to create separation. Landry gets a lot of passes thrown his way, making him a reliable asset in fantasy leagues. Landry’s fantasy production is Kupp’s upside.

Projected Range for Rookie Drafts

According to DLF’s Rookie ADP, Kupp is being considered a late second round pick in rookie drafts with a 23.78 ADP. He is also on average the ninth receiver selected off the board. MFL’s Rookie ADP, which has offensive and defensive players listed, has Kupp as an early third round pick with an ADP of 28.56. A third round rookie pick is a very palatable price tag, making him a low-cost acquisition in rookie drafts.

I’m not a big fan of Kupp, because I try to lean away from players who are very dependent on target volume to become fantasy relevant. The Rams don’t have a high volume passing attack and I don’t see where the targets are going to come from for him to become a consistent play in fantasy. I would rather spend my mid to late round picks on players who have a lot of upside, instead of volume dependent role players. The goal here is to one day cash in big on one of my lottery tickets.

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Bruce Matson

Contributor at Dynasty League Football

I'm a financial counselor for a hospital in South Central Ohio. I graduated from Muskingum University with a bachelor's in business while minoring in Economics and Accounting. I won my first fantasy football title with Jake Plummer as my quarterback.